Fornia



June 23, 1931.

C. M. F. FRIDEN CALCULATING MACHINE Filed Sept. 1'7, 1928 2/ MUN 1 Carl NVENT A TTORNEYS Patented June 23, 1931 I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CARL M. F. FRIDEN, 0E OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO MARCHANT CALCULAT- ING MACHINE COMPANY,- OF EMERYVILLE, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF CALI- FORNIA CALCULATING MACHINE Application filed September 17, 1928. Serial No. 366,337.

The invention relates particularly to calculating machines of the key-board type,

followin culating machine of the into which values are introduced by impulses on the keys. Impulse on a key produces movement of a selector unit and the impulse is almost invariably sufficiently strong to cause the unit to overthrow and then return to its selected adjusted position.

An object of the invention is to provide means whereby the selector unit is moved to selected adjusted positions by impulse on a key, and is prevented from overthrowing.

The invention possesses other advantageous features, some of which with the foregoing will be set forth at length in the description, where I shall outline in full t at form of the invention which I have selected for illustration in the drawing accompanying and forming part of the .resent specification. In said drawing, I shown one form of my invention, but it is to be understood that I do not limitmyself to such form, since the invention, as set forth in the claims, may be embodied in a plurality of forms. I l

The drawing is tion through a calculating machine, showing one embodiment of my invention.

The invention is shown embodied in a caleneral type disclosed in my rior United tates Patent No. 1,643,710, of eptember 27, 1927;" This type of calculating machine embodies an actuator comprising a plurality of rotatably mounted selector units, which are moved to adjusted selected ositions by impulse on the keys of the key-board. Ten keys, of different numerical value, from zero to nine, inclusive, are associatedwith each selecting unit and depression of a key setsthe unit in adjusted position corresponding to the "value of the depressed key. Means are provided which are operative, upon initial movement of the actuator, to lock the selecting element in adjusted position and, if the actuator is thrown into operation immediately after the ke on the key-board has been struck, the locking means may engage the. selector unit, while such unit is in an overthrown position, thereby causing the introduction of an error into.

ave

a vertical longitudinalsecnine key.

the machine. Due to the impulse on the key,

I operation, it sometimes occurs that the selector unit is locked in an overthrown position. The object of the present invention is to prevent overthrow of the selector unit without interfering with the ready positioning thereof and without increasing the key pressure required to set the key. I

The drawing shows only such parts of the calculating machine as arerequired to disclose the present invention, reference being had to the aforementioned Letters Patent for a disclosure of' a complete calculating machine. chine by selectively setting the selector units of the actuator. Each of these units 2 is 1'0- tatablymounted on the actuator shaft 3 and is suitably connected to a row of keys of different numerical values, so that the selector unit is differentially posltioned by depression of a selected key; Usually, ten keys 4 are associated with each selector unit, the front key being the zero key and the rear key being the Each key includes a key stem 5, provided with means for looking it in depressed position,a usual form being a cam 6 'on' the key stem which cooperates with a slotted spring pressed slide 7. The depressed key is thus held in depressed position until it is released by releasing movement of the slide 7 when the key is'returned to elevated position by the spring 8.

Interposed between the key stems and the selector unit 2 is a motion transmittin mechanism, which is difierentially mova le, depending upon the value of the depressed key. The present motion transmitting mechanism comprises a key-bar 12 pivoted at its rear end on the shaft 13 and lying below and being. disconnected from the stems 5 of the keys. The key-bar 12 being separate from the key stems 5, impulse on a key imparts momentum to the key-bar 12, which tends to move it downward a greater distance than the downward movement of the key stem, and this excess of movement has caused the Values are introduced into the maunit past the position correspondin with the gear 19, secured to the selector unit.

overthrow of the selector unit. Movement is transmitted from the key-bar 12 to the selector unit 2 through the bell crank lever 14, pivoted on the shaft 15 and provided at one end with a pin 16, seated in a slot 17 in the key-bar, and provided at its other end with an arcuate rack 18, which is in mesh with a The selector unit is normally held in zero position and the key-bar 12 is normally held in elevated position by the spring 21, secured to the bell crank lever 14. 4

Means is provided for locking the selector unit in adjusted position, and this means is brought into operation upon the initial movement of the actuator, which is secured to the shaft 3, from full cycle position. In the present instance, this means comprises a cam 22, secured to the actuator shaft 3, and having a depressed portion, which is engaged by the arm 24, when the actuator is in full cycle position. The arm 24 is secured to a shaft 25, to which there is secured a plurality of locking pawls 26, there being one locking pawl for each selector unit. The selector unit is provided with an arcuate rack 27 which is disposed adjacent the end'of the locking pawl 26, and, when the shaft 25 is rocked, the locking pawl is moved into engagement with the rack 27, looking the selecting unit in position.

The present invention provides means for preventing the movement of the selecting to the rawing, in association keys valued from one to seven, insince I have found that it is imvalue of the depressed key. In the I have shown this mechanism elusive,

' possible to lock the selecting unit in an overthrown position, when either the eight or the ninekey'has been depressed. The pin and slot connection 16-17, operates as a a 33. The slide 31 is stop to prevent movement of the selectin unit past the nine position, so that no other means are necessary to prevent an overthrow by depression of the nine Similarly, it is impossible to operate the machine to catch the selector unit in an overthrown position when the eight key is depressed but, if desirable, the mechanism shown can readily be extended to include the eight key.

Disposed below the stems 5 of the keys of the value of one to seven, inclusive, is a slide 31, mounted on brackets 32 and normally 1 held in lnoperative position by the spring provided on its upper surface with a plurality of differentially inclined surfaces 34, which are disposed in the path of the key stems 5. The inclination of the various surfaces 34 is different, so that upon depression of a key 4%,the amount of .mov'ement of the slide 31 is 'a-function of'the 'value' of the depressedkey. Depression of the one key causes the greatest movement of the slide and depression of theseven key I responding to the value of the depressed key,

thereby preventing overthrow of the selector unit. Theselectorunit2ispositively connected to the key-bar 12 so that by limiting the downward movement of the key-bar to its proper differential position, the rotatin movement of the selecting unit is also limite so that such unit does not move beyond its proper differential position. The pin slot connection 16-917, prevents movement of the selector unit independently of the key-bar.

At its forward end, the key-bar 12 is provided with a pin or roller 35 and, at its for ward end, the slide 31 is provided with a surface 36, so formed that it forms an abutment for the roller 35, when the key-bar 12 has moved downward a distance corresponding to the value of the depressed keys. Upon depression of any key, the key-bar 12 moves downward and the slide 31 moves forward, bringing the roller 35 and the surface 36 into contact when both the slide and the key-bar have moved the differential distances corresponding to the value of the depressed key, thus locking the key-bar 12against'further downward movement and consequently pre venting overthrow of the sel ctor unit.

I claim:

1. In a calculating machine, a plurality of impulse operated keys, a pivoted key bar positioned below the keys, a movable unit connected to said key-bar and a slide moved by the keys into engagement with the key bar to limit downward movement of the key-bar.

2. In a calculating machine, a plurality of g impulse operated keys of different values, a

pivoted key-bar arranged below the keys and separate therefrom and adapted to e differentially positioned thereby, a movable unit connected to the-key-bar, a slide arranged below the keys and separate therefrom and adapted to be differentially positioned thereby and means on the key-bar adapted to engage the slide to prevent further movement of the key-bar upon the completion of the selected diiferential movement of the cey-bar. A

3. In a calculating machine, a plurality of depressible keys of difi'erent values, a differentially movable key-bar associated therewith, and a diflerentially movable slide arranged to be moved by depression of a key to engage the key-bar to limit the movement of the key-bar to a magnitude corresponding to the value of the depressed key. i

hereunto set CARL M. F. FRIDEN. 

